


Feathers and Fluff

by Amber_Aglio



Series: Amber's Fair Game Week 2020 [4]
Category: RWBY
Genre: Day 4: Birds/Soulmates, Fluff, M/M, fairgameweek2020
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-19
Updated: 2020-03-19
Packaged: 2021-02-28 18:41:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,106
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23211931
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Amber_Aglio/pseuds/Amber_Aglio
Summary: There is a bird sleeping in Clover's closet. Whatever is he to do?Written for Fair Game Week day 4: Birds/Soulmates
Relationships: Qrow Branwen/Clover Ebi
Series: Amber's Fair Game Week 2020 [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1665745
Comments: 17
Kudos: 133





	Feathers and Fluff

**Author's Note:**

> I'm not very good at soulmate AUs, and I love birb!Qrow, so of course I had to write some feathery fluff! This is the shortest of my FGW works, but it's packed with tooth-rotting domesticity. 
> 
> A big thank you to my loveliest beta [thedarkpoet](https://archiveofourown.org/users/thedarkpoet/pseuds/thedarkpoet) for helping with this fic!

It was late at night that Clover finally stumbled into his quarters. No, that’s not quite right - into their quarters, as of quite recently.

His and Qrow’s. He still wasn’t fully used to it, but it had a nice ring to it.

Clover had been away on a mission for a long time - nearly a month. He had missed his boyfriend like crazy, and even if he didn’t want to disturb Qrow’s sleep, he was looking forward to falling into bed and snuggling into Qrow’s side, warm and welcoming.

Clover had been supposed to arrive in the morning, but he got impatient and lucky, catching a late transport to Atlas. No one could ever prove that he activated his semblance when walking into the airfield - did you personally see him flick his pin? No? Then it didn’t happen.

So yes, he was fully intending to surprise his partner in the morning, or perhaps even now, if Qrow woke up from the noise.

But to Clover’s eternal surprise, the room was completely empty. He checked his scroll in confusion - did Qrow take a mission? But the roster was empty, indicating that Qrow had a free evening.

Could he be with his nieces? Granted, it was late, nearing morning, but… who knows? An all-night movie marathon? Or a game that ran a bit too long?

Clover quickly shot a message to Ruby, and another one to General Ironwood, who had debriefed him mere moments ago and was certainly still (already?) awake.

Ruby was silent, but Ironwood replied immediately.

No, Qrow didn’t have any secret missions. Yes, he should be in his room, stop bothering me and go to sleep, Ebi.

Clover tried to suppress the disappointment. He’d been looking forward to this moment, hoping to see the delighted expression on Qrow’s face. He was hoping to get his share of hugs and kisses, too.

Could Qrow be out somewhere? But if not on a mission, then where could he be? Did something personal come up?

Maybe he really was with his nieces and they all fell asleep after whatever they’d been doing. Yes, that sounded like the most plausible explanation.

Still, whatever it was, it meant that Clover would have to go to sleep alone.

A brief, selfish thought appeared, begging him to go to team RWBY’s room and check if Qrow was there, but Clover dismissed it immediately. He wasn’t going to wake up the girls simply because he was feeling lonely and needy, not to mention that there was a small chance Qrow wasn’t even there and then everyone would start panicking.

No, he was sure it would get solved one way or another in the morning. Also, Clover was absolutely exhausted and could feel his eyes closing. He shrugged off his battered uniform, not really caring where it fell, and forcefully stomped out any unwarranted disappointment. Qrow would come back on his own accord. There was no point fretting over it now. 

So Clover decided to go to sleep. He opened the closet to grab some pajamas, and… instead of neat shelves of clothing, he was met with a mess. And in the middle of that mess slept a crow.

Literally. There was a bird in his closet. Clover blinked several times and decided he needed that sleep more than he realized.

The crow had made a nest out of Clover’s old hoodie and some shirts, crumpled into unrecognizable heaps on one of the shelves. The bird was burrowed deep into the clothing, feathers ruffled despite the warmth of the room. It looked… cute. Maybe too cute.

Clover carefully raised his hand and petted the crow. That was most likely a stupid thing to do, but if there was a bird in their bedroom, in Clover’s clothing, then it must be Qrow’s pet or something…

A distant memory clicked, of Qrow once telling him, in the dimly lit safety of their bedroom, how Ozpin granted him and his sister magical powers to turn into birds. Clover had asked for a demonstration, but Qrow laughed it off, distracting him with a kiss and maybe some other things, so the concept remained a half-formed notion at the back of Clover’s mind. Now, though…

The crow opened his eyes. They were the perfect shade of red, not the usual glassy black of birds.

Clover expected Qrow to jump off the shelf, to turn back into human form, but instead the bird leaned into his caress, demanding more attention. Clover obliged with a chuckle, running his hand along the shining black feathers. He had to admit, this form suited Qrow - but then again, Clover thought Qrow could become a bush and still manage to be pretty and interesting.

The crow nipped Clover’s fingers lovingly, and any doubts Clover had about its identity disappeared.

“Hey. Fancy seeing you here,” Clover picked the crow up and hugged him to his chest. Qrow protested for a short moment, flapping his wings and almost falling out of Clover’s arms, but then relaxed, his feathers slowly settling down. He looked as if he was frowning and nudged Clover’s hand with his head for more attention.

Clover raised the bird higher to press his cheek to the feathers. “Yeah, I missed you, too. It’s been too long.” The bird cawed in agreement, and Clover walked slowly back to the bed. He fell onto it, still pressing his corvid companion close to his chest.

“We can talk in the morning. Sorry, I’m tired… Wanted to see you really badly.” The bird tugged at the strand of hair that fell out of his quiff and snuggled closer. Red eyes closed.

“Yeah… good night.” It didn’t take long for Clover to fall asleep. Everything was fine. He was home.

***

Clover woke up because someone was tugging at his ear. He twitched away from the irritating not-quite-pain, but it returned more insistently, making him groan.

“Mooom… Five more minutes, I swear, I’m gett’n up…” He burrowed his face in the pillow and ear-tugging stopped. Instead, something firm carded through his hair.

Wait. He hadn’t lived with anyone who would tug his ears for decades.

Clover turned his head and opened one eye. Right, how could he have forgotten about last night...

A large black bird was staring at him with obvious amusement. 

“Stop judging, I barely got any sleep the previous night.” Clover turned to face the crow and covered a yawn with his fist. “What time is it even?..”

Qrow cocked his head to the side and nipped at Clover’s ear once more with unmistakable care and affection. Clover squinted at the clock on the bedside table. It was nearing noon.

“Have you been here the entire time?” Clover asked, torn between amusement and affection. “You must have been bored out of your mind.”

Qrow looked down, and Clover teased him, “Oh, or is it that you couldn’t rest well without me and you have actually been sleeping all this time, too?”

He immediately felt guilty when the Qrow tightened his talons on Clover’s shoulder and tugged at a strand of his hair a little too forcefully, making him wince. Oh. Hit too close to home, that one.

“Sorry, sorry.” Clover raised his hand to pet the scowling crow. “I’m here now, that’s what matters, right?”

Then, in a flash, the bird was gone. It took all of Clover’s self-control not to react when the weight on his chest suddenly multiplied and a fully grown man in crumpled clothing was straddling him, looking annoyed and delighted at the same time.

“You better not make fun of what I do as a bird,” he threatened, and then offered softly, “I missed you, Lucky Charm.”

Clover felt a grin grow on his face against his will. Qrow’s scowl returned full-force, and to Clover it was no less adorable than in his bird form, “I said don’t laugh!”

Clover pecked him on the nose in apology, “Sorry. I missed you, too, I promise I wasn’t laughing. Just… Happy.”

Qrow tried to scowl a bit longer, but in the end dropped his full weight onto his boyfriend and buried his face in Clover’s chest.

“I can feel you shaking. You are laughing!” He exclaimed sulkily.

At that point Clover couldn’t suppress it anymore. “You’re just too adorable, I can’t resist.”

“I’m not adorable.” His petulant voice, muffled in Clover’s bare chest, begged to differ.

“Yes, you are. You made a nest out of my shirts. Was it cozy?”

Qrow tried to roll off him, though without any serious intent to leave the comfort of the bed, “You’re being mean. Where’s the attentive and supportive boyfriend who would pay me compliments?”

Clover laughed harder but still pulled Qrow closer into an embrace, not letting him escape. “I promise he’s still there, and he wants to know what clothing is better suited for nesting. See? That’s support.”

At this point even Qrow couldn’t hold it anymore and burst into giggles, slapping Clover’s arm in mock anger.

“You’re not freaked out?” he asked, but it seemed to be more out of habit than real insecurity. The realization made Clover feel strangely warm and proud on Qrow’s behalf.

“I’m curious,” he admitted. “But I’m pretty sure you’ve told me about it before.”

Qrow relaxed and propped himself up on Clover’s chest, tracing patterns on the bare muscles of his arms.

“It’s one thing to hear and another thing to see. I imagine you’re not exactly used to having a shape-shifter for a boyfriend.”

“No,” Clover answered readily, “but I’m more than willing to get used to it.”

Qrow rolled his eyes, but he was smiling. “Sap.”

“Look who’s talking,” Clover countered.

That earned him a quick kiss on the lips - finally, the proper good morning was long overdue. As Qrow pulled back, Clover tried to chase after his lips, but was stopped by Qrow’s finger.

“Uh-uh. Shower first, you’re all gross. And brush your teeth.”

“I thought you were happy to see me?” Clover protested in mock indignation. He did feel kind of gross, having been too tired for a shower last night, but he also didn’t want to leave the comfortable bed quite yet.

“I am. And I will be even happier when you shower.” Qrow booped Clover’s nose in a distinctly Yang-like manner and for a moment looked mildly embarrassed at the gesture, but shrugged it off. “Go on, make yourself presentable if you want any more of those kisses.”

“And what am I going to find when I get back?” Clover asked teasingly, returning the boop. “Am I going to find another nest?”

Qrow groaned and flopped off of Clover onto his side of the bed.

“Birdbrains.” he said, cheeks slightly heating up.

“Huh?” Clover sat up. He failed to understand the leap of logic in the conversation.

“Bird brains can fit a lot less worrying than human brains,” Qrow clarified. “So if there are ever too many thoughts in my head, I would turn into a bird and go fly for a bit or something. And I figured it would be easier to sleep without you if I couldn’t worry about all the things that could have happened to you. The clothes helped me concentrate on something simple and good.”

“Oh.” Clover was a little stunned by the admission. “So what you mean to say…”

“Now that you’re back home, I don’t have so much to worry about and have no need to turn into a bird. Sorry about your clothes, by the way. I was going to clean it up before you came home.” Qrow scratched the back of his head in that adorable shy gesture. Clover loved and hated it - the sign of Qrow’s uneasiness with compliments and positivity, and it always left him wanting to shower the man with more attention. Clover intercepted the hand and kissed it - first the back, then each finger and finally the palm. When he looked up, Qrow was staring at him wide-eyed.

“It’s okay, I don’t mind.” Clover smiled at his boyfriend. “I wish I had something of you when I was away, too.”

Qrow blushed a deeper red and pushed at Clover’s chest. “Do you want your proper good morning kiss or what? Get going, we don’t have all day.”

Clover caught a glimpse of a pleased, lovely smile before Qrow sat up and swung his feet over the edge of the bed.

“I’ll clean the closet up while you shower, make sure there are no stray feathers.”

Clover couldn’t suppress the grin, but obeyed.

He didn’t actually mind if there were feathers on his uniform, as long as they were Qrow’s.

**Author's Note:**

> Visit my [tumblr](https://amber-aglio.tumblr.com/) if you suddenly want to see more!


End file.
